The Elementalist

Chapter two

The shower ended after about twenty-five minutes. Cynthia debated over being mad about how long the girl had taken the shower, since she was paying for her own water bill, but then shrugged it off. The girl needed it. A few minutes later, the girl walked out, her hair wrapped in a towel. After a moment of silence, Cynthia spoke. "So, let's get down to the basics. You know my name, but I don't know yours." The girl paused for a second, but then responded to her question. "My name is Bianca. Bianca Johnson." Cynthia nodded. "Cool. Okay Bianca, how old are you?" Bianca looked at the floor. "I'm... I'm nineteen." she sighed. "Nineteen? Wow, I'm only a couple years older than you. I'm twenty-one." Cynthia was shocked. The tiny girl in front of her looked like she was about fifteen.

"Yeah, its unbelievable, right? I'm so short!" Bianca's mood seemed to be better after her shower and new clothes. "So, Bianca, you aren't in my college are you? I would have probably recognized you if you went." Cynthia asked, motioning for Bianca to sit on the couch. "I'm... your friend Hannah's cousin. She told me your name, and I wanted to meet you?" Bianca shifted slightly. She was very obviously not telling the truth.

Cynthia's face scrunched up like she had tasted something bitter. "Bianca, if that really is your name, I know you're lying. Hannah doesn't have any cousins. Her parents were both only children. Now, will you tell me how you really know my name?" Cynthia snapped. Bianca jumped back, tears in her gray eyes. Cynthia felt a pang of sympathy, but shook it off quickly. "She didn't have to lie to me," Cynthia thought to herself.

Bianca stared at Cynthia for a moment, and then burst into tears. "I-I'm sorry!" Bianca bawled. Cynthia looked at her in confusion. "I followed you home from Hannah's! I'm sorry! I was cold, and I was wet, and I was tired! I haven't eaten in days! My family kicked me out! I've been by myself for weeks! All I wanted was a shower!" Bianca continued, tears streaming down her face.

Cynthia glanced at the crying girl with tears in her own eyes. Bianca looked so pathetic, Cynthia instantly felt sorry for her. "Oh Bianca, I'm sorry. It will be okay, I promise. You shouldn't have to lie to me though. Do you want something to eat?" Cynthia asked. Bianca nodded her head. "Yeah, that would be nice," she whispered. Cynthia grabbed her phone. "I'll order a pizza. Do you want anything on it?" Cynthia questioned. Bianca's face lit up. "I love pepperoni and olives on my pizza. Thank you!"

Cynthia ordered the pizza, and then flopped back down on the couch again. "Hey Bianca? You want some popcorn while we wait?" Cynthia turned toward Bianca. "Hell yeah! I'll go make it!" Bianca jumped up. "Oh, no you aren't. You are going to stay on the couch. I'll even let you pick the show we can watch." Cynthia tossed Bianca the remote, and then walked to the kitchen.

The bowl of unpopped popcorn was still waiting, right where she left it. Cynthia picked up the bowl, ready to put it onto the stove, when she realized how hot the bowl was. The metal felt like it was scorching her hands. Cynthia hissed in pain, and then dropped the bowl on the counter. She then ran over to the sink, dousing her hands in cold water.

Bianca appeared next to her in a second. "I heard a crash. You okay?" Cynthia pulled her hands from the water, drying them off. "Y-yeah," Cynthia replied, shaking slightly. "I just burned my hands." Bianca grabbed Cynthia's hands gently. "Well, no burn marks. You should be okay." Bianca remarked, turning to the bowl of popcorn. "The popcorn looks so good! Thanks for making it!" Cynthia glanced at Bianca in confusion. "I didn't-" but before she could say anything else, Bianca showed her the freshly popped bowl of popcorn.

Bianca, oblivious to Cynthia's confusion, looked around the room for the butter and salt. In a daze, Cynthia pointed out the locations of the toppings, and watched as Bianca buttered and salted the popcorn. "Thanks a bunch! I'll be in the TV room!" Bianca bounced into the adjoining room. Cynthia nodded, still confused.

"What the hell just happened?" she muttered under her breath. "I know that the popcorn wasn't popped when I got burned." Realizing that Bianca was probably wondering where she was, Cynthia plastered on a smile, grabbed some blankets from her room, and walked into the TV room. 

"Hey Cyn! I can call you that, right? Anyway, I picked a show for us to watch!" Bianca's gray eyes sparkled with happiness. Cynthia absentmindedly checked the popcorn. A large portion of it was already gone. Bianca looked so much happier now that she had eaten.

"Hey Bianca! I grabbed us some blankets!" Cynthia tried to match Bianca's cheery tone, but something in her voice must have given her away, because Bianca gave her a funny look. Cynthia flashed her another fake smile, and Bianca turned back to the screen. "I picked one of my favorite shows, but if you don't want to watch it, that's totally okay!" Bianca clicked on an episode. Cynthia glanced at the screen with disinterest. The show was about two brothers fighting ghosts, demons, and other supernatural stuff. It was a show that Cynthia would have liked, had she not have been so distracted.

Bianca evidently picked up on Cynthia's mood, because she paused the show. "Hey, you seem distracted. I know I just met you, but I just wanted to ask, are you okay?" Bianca turned towards Cynthia with concern in her eyes. It's funny how almost an hour ago, their roles were switched.

Cynthia hesitated, and then sighed. "Well, these weird things keep happening to me today. Before you came, I had just got home. My Vans were soaked. I was holding them, and I said something along the lines of 'I wish my Vans weren't wet' and poof! My shoes were dry. And then just now, I was going to pop popcorn for us, and the bowl got really hot. I go to rinse my hands, and the popcorn is popped."

Cynthia took a deep breath. "I'm not crazy, at least I don't think I am. I just want to know what's going on. Is this all inside my head? Am I just over reacting? Maybe I am crazy." Cynthia let out a depressed huff. Bianca gave her a glance, and then mumbled something under her breath. Cynthia strained to hear it. It sounded like "No way. I don't believe it."

Bianca stood up and stretched her arms. "Um, I'm going to use your bathroom. I'll be
right back." She stood up, and trudged in the direction of the bathroom. Cynthia stared at the screen for about ten minutes when she heard a soft murmur coming from behind the bathroom door. She got up, and tip toed to the door.

Cynthia stood awkwardly in front of the bathroom door, listen to Bianca talk on what she assumed was her cell phone. Cynthia felt bad for eavesdropping, but she wanted to know what Bianca was saying. Cynthia pressed her against the door, trying to make out Bianca's words.

Bianca's voice was low and stressed. "I'm telling you Flynn, she is definitely an elementalist. She's showing all the signs." She pauses for a second, most likely listening to Flynn on the other side. "Hannah said she suspected something, but I didn't actually believe her." Cynthia's heart sinks, hearing Hannah's name mentioned. Bianca really did know Hannah after all.